


For Love Of...

by Sanjuno



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Zack Lives, Cid is a Dragon your argument is invalid, Cid wins through the power of shouting and tea, Cid's real gender is Dragon, F/M, For the given value of sane, Genderfluid Character, Genderfluid Cid Highwind, M/M, Multi, Non-homicidal Sephiroth, Sane Sephiroth, Sephiroth is a Mama's boy, The Powers of Good get Sneaky
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-04
Updated: 2017-12-14
Packaged: 2018-09-06 10:05:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8745979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanjuno/pseuds/Sanjuno
Summary: So Captain Cid Highwind crashes his plane (again) and ends up fending off the vampiric advances of an isolation-maddened ghost who was trapped in a mako crystal. A period of temporary insanity combined with meddling Cetra spirits somehow results in a world where General Sephiroth takes to calling Cid “Mother”. 
Also, you know That Thing With The Meteor? Yeah. It goes a bit differently this time.





	1. Stuck between a rock and a burning place.

**Author's Note:**

> God this is old. Took me two hours to tidy this up into something close to my usual standards. Still a cool idea though, so I'm gonna post it anyway.

**(In which Cid prods metaphysical buttock.)**

  
Captain Cid Highwind cursed fit to turn the air blue and kicked the side of the twisted pile of scrap that had been his personal plane up until a half-hour ago. Still muttering strings of profanity to himself, Cid looked around. Aside from the still-smoking heap of ex-airplane there was no sign of human habitation. Just mountains and sky for as far as the human eye could see. This had been exactly what Cid Highwind had been looking for. No morons to distract him or give him sad looks, just plenty of room to spread his wings. Wings which were now a smoking pile of modern art. Fuck. Was he cursed? It seemed that he lost every pair of wings he built.

Angered by the maudlin turn of his thoughts Cid cursed again until he felt better. Then he salvaged what he could from his plane and took a careful look around. He spotted a cave a further ways up the mountain, and shouldering the makeshift pack of supplies he started making his way up the steep incline.   
  
When he finally managed to haul himself over the lip of the cliff-edge protrusion in front of the cave Cid took a moment to just lie still and breathe.  
  
“Fuck. Mebbe I _should_ cut back on the cigs.” Cid stared thoughtfully at the sky as he considered the idea. “Nah.”  
  
Hauling himself to his feet Cid dropped his pack just inside the cave mouth. Fishing out a small flashlight, Cid set off deeper into the cave with a heartfelt growl. “There had better _not_ be any god damn monsters living in here or I am gonna be right _pissed_.”  
  
/…/  
  
_… She stirred, curiosity prompting her to send a tendril of her awareness outward despite her soul-deep woe. A human presence drew nearer, bright and burning and free. Not like she, trapped here, neither living nor dead, forever bound by regrets. An idea occurred to her, born of despair and half-forgotten childhood tales. It was an awful idea, monstrous, but… if it worked, if she could do this horrible thing, then maybe she could find her son.  
  
… Her son.  
  
… For him she could find the strength to do it. For love of her son. For her little Sephiroth.  
_  
/…/  
  
Cid could not believe his eyes.  
  
“That’s the biggest be-damned mako fountain I _ever_ did see.” Cid ignored the fact that he was alone. The statement deserved saying. He also ignored the weird echoes his voice created. Just like he was not the slightest bit uncomfortable having stone surrounding him on all sides, hemming him in and blocking his view of the sky.  
  
Yep.  
  
Fascinated by the glowing play of colours, Cid stepped closer, noticing something odd once he came within arm’s reach of the fountain. A shadow lay within the glittering lights.  
  
“Tyr’s fucking phallic overcompensation.” Cid stared in aghast horror. “How in the hell did ya git yerself stuck in there?”  
  
The body of the woman fossilized in mako did not answer. Of course she did not, Cid snorted, she was dead, a big damn paperweight, but Cid felt better for having voiced the question.  
  
Although he damn well knew better, Cid could not help but reach out to touch.  
  
_… I’m sorry, so sorry but my son, O my son!_  
  
It was that instant when his fingertips brushed against the surface of the mako crystal that Cid Highwind would later insist was the very moment that his life took a turn for the batshit insane.  
  
/…/  
  
_… She… Lucrecia, her name was Lucrecia… Lucrecia pulled the living human into her cage. An action made simple when his shock kept him from struggling against her. She let the last of her physical body dissolve into Memory and she slid inside of the man… a man! No matter, that could be changed as well. She wanted to apologise, to explain why she did as she did, but there was no way he could be conscious enough to understand her words, well meaning as they may have been.  
  
‘ **WHAT THE HELL?!** ’ A roar shattered her concentration, made her struggle for control as the bright mind she had trapped lashed out and fought against her possession.  
  
… No! I must find my son! Lucrecia grappled with the other mind, her thoughts consumed with the notion of seeking out her child.  
  
‘ **Oh, I don’t think so bitch! Find some other sucker!** ’ The voice, the man who was far more aware than he should be, he growled, mental presence growing with a roar like anger-fed greedy flames. Burning up, lashing out, and breaking through her hold, turning her intent against her. She had meant to take him over, use his flesh, to shape a living body for herself with which she could escape her prison and find her son. Instead she was caught in hard talons, an iron cage of dauntless will held her fast as the fangs and flames of rage prepared to tear her apart.  
  
… No! Please, please! Let me go to my son! She sobbed, one hand out flung, pleading, begging, and seeking mercy. A slight pause, a chink in the passion-forged armour that guarded his mind from her invasion opened as he heard her words. She struck out, forcing herself through, putting all the unequalled power of a mother's love behind the blow.  
  
… Felt it connect, and felt an all-too-brief thrill of triumph, of hope.  
  
… Wailed thinly in despair when she was torn apart and devoured by the sleeping dragon she had roused in the man's soul.  
_  
/…/

The confusion in his mind died down as he sensed the destruction of the threat. He was tired, and he hurt, so he curled up in his crystal shell and drifted on currents of Memory, only partially awake as he brought his thoughts back into order.  
  
Was he Lucrecia Crescent, or Cid Highwind?  
  
He thought, no, he _knew_ that he was Captain Highwind. Yet at the same time he held the Memory of another. The memory of a son. Conception, the nine months of gestation, the birth and the loss. Remembered screaming for her baby as a limp-haired, sallow-faced man carried the wailing newborn away. Hojo had been so very pleased with the resulting specimen.  
  
Cid growled.  
  
_‘Well.’_ Cid Highwind mused to himself as his disturbed mind settled into something resembling normal patterns, shifting in his crystal prison. _‘Old Loony-bitch managed to do something after all.’_  
  
Indeed, Cid Highwind had been altered on a fundamental level. The most feared Captain in the Shin-Ra air force, the most brilliant aerospace engineer on Gaia… was General Sephiroth’s new mother.  
  
_‘Gods blood.’_ Irritation flared up anew and Cid growled. _‘I’m too old for this shit.’_  
  
_‘The only interesting thing about this is that now I know the answers to all those damned questions everyone back at Shin-Ra asked when they gabbled about the Demon General.’_ Cid considered things in that light for a moment and was immediately more cheerful about his new circumstances. _‘Ha. Well, the rest of my life is going to a laugh a minute. Assuming I can get my ass out this damned overgrown mako lava-lamp.’_  
  
Cid scowled, saw only coloured light and growled louder. There had to be a way out of this. _‘You’re a fucking genius Highwind. A genius whose brain just **ate** a ghost with more than a decade of experience at this. Now think of something!’_  
  
Cid tried to remember everything he knew about mako.  
  
Okay. So.  
  
… One. It powered the reactors.  
  
… Two. Crystallized mako made materia.  
  
… Three. You stuck it in people the make SOLDIERS.  
  
Cid frowned, that was pathetic. He had to know more than that, anything. Something about… aha.  
  
… Four. Mako came from the Lifestream, which flowed through the whole Planet.  
  
… Five. All life came from and returned to the Lifestream.  
  
… Six. Materia held the wisdom of the Ancients.  
  
Cid grimaced, it was not much to go off, but using what he could pull from Lucrecia’s memories at least he had enough to start working with.  
  
_‘The Lifestream…’_ Cid turned the thought over slowly, his smile grim as he started working out the angles. _‘Flows **everywhere** and touches **everyone**.’_  
  
He gathered his energy and was about to try and contact Shera when something **screamed**.  
  
… _Anger. Fear. **Pain**._  
  
The light around Cid thrashed like a serpent in its death throes. Unable to just hide and cower, Cid reached out instinctively to see what was causing the storm, not even sure he could until he did. It was easier than he would have thought to send his mind winging towards the disturbance, following a faint tug. He heard voices at the edge of his perception and followed them down. This was the epicentre, the source of the calamity that frothed around him. Cid homed in on the conversation until the voices were clear as if he were standing right next to them. The content of the conversation however, made his eyebrows rise.  
  
A female voice was the loudest, overpowering, and syrupy-sweet as poisoned honey, crooning softly about betrayal and death and cleansing. The other voice was male, a deep, commanding voice ill suited to the half-hearted protests and confused questions it responded with.  
  
**[my son, o my son! avenge me! destroy the betrayers! kill the humans; crush them like the insects they are! free me and ascend as a god above those who imprisoned me!]**  
  
She (‘ _Jenova…’_ murmured a quiet voice in Cid’s head) Jenova screamed for blood, for a sacrifice of lives on her cold alter.  
  
**[o my son, my vessel, set me free!]**  
  
_‘Mother, I, but Zack…’_  
  
**[my son, bring a reckoning! take my vengeance in a tithe of blood, reap the witless mortals’ lives with your sword, my Sephiroth…]**  
  
Sephiroth? Cid froze as things clicked into place, a sudden understanding of the situation given to him by that name…  
  
… And by a small voice that whispered counterpoint under Jenova’s howls.  
  
_‘Who the hell are you?’_ Cid growled defensively. He was fed up with people trying to get into his head.  
  
_… Cetra…_ A reed-thin whisper, broken and almost faded, pleaded with him softly, clasping ghostly hands to Cid’s when he begrudgingly reached out _… Help. The Calamity comes._  
  
_‘What do you mean?’_ Cid shifted warily in his prison of crystal as unease plucked at tense nerves.  
  
She told him all she knew.  
  
_‘OH HELL NO BITCH! NOT **MY** SON YOU DON’T!’_  
  
/…/  
  
Sephiroth hunched over the desk, many files spread over its surface. He could still hear her. His mother’s voice rang loud in his head. The things she had told him, combined with what he had learned from Hojo’s files, had made him forget all about worrying over the dubious sanity of hearing voices. Mother was Cetra, and he shared her blood, so of course they were not limited to human means of communication.   
  
_‘Enough. That is enough, Mother. Please stop screaming, I am coming, stop screaming.’_ Sephiroth stood, staggered, wondered when the last time he had eaten or slept had been. Could not remember, and so dismissed it as unimportant. He was not as weak as that. Sephiroth was almost to the door when another voice roared in his head.  
  
_‘WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, SPACE-BITCH? YOU WILL NOT TURN **MY SON** INTO YOUR GODDAMN PUPPET!’_  
  
Pure outrage scorched him… no, not he that fury was directed at Mother.  
  
_‘SHE IS **NOT** YOUR MOTHER YOU IDIOT. TRY USING YOUR BRAIN FOR SOMETHING OTHER THAN ANGST AND PAPERWORK.’_  
  
Sephiroth blinked the spots from his vision, surprised to find himself on his knees a few feet from the door, his sword lying on the floor beside him. “Excuse me?”  
  
_‘YOU HEARD ME THE FIRST TIME, DIPSHIT.’_  
  
Sephiroth drew himself up in affront, this new voice was so loud it drowned out Mother.  
  
_‘JENOVA IS **NOT** YOUR MOTHER. SHE’S A FUNGUS.’_  
  
It spouted nothing but insults and lies! He refused to listen.  
  
_‘OH, GROW A SPINE, BRIGHT-EYES. THE ALIEN BITCH ISN’T YOUR MOTHER ANY MORE THAN THE GODDAMN TEST TUBES ARE.’_  
  
“How would you know?!” Sephiroth demanded in reflex, reaching for Masamune despite the sword being useless in this battle.  
  
_‘BECAUSE I FUCKING WELL REMEMBER GIVING BIRTH TO YOU, YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BRAT!’_  
  
“That’s impossible.” Sephiroth snarled, lurching to his feet and bracing himself on a bookcase as his head spun, heedless of the shelf contents tumbling to the floor.  
  
_‘IS IT? THE JENOVA CELLS WERE INJECTED IN-VITRO. WHICH MEANS YOU WERE CONCEIVED **BEFORE** THE SPACE BITCH CAME INTO THE PICTURE.’_  
  
The logic of the statement made Sephiroth’s outrage hesitate. “But…”  
  
_‘WHO ARE YOU GOING TO BELIEVE KID? THE CRAZY BITCH WHO WANTS YOU TO KILL OFF THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE? OR THE ONE TELLING YOU TO STOP AND **THINK** FOR A GODDAMN SECOND INSTEAD OF THROWING A TEMPER TANTRUM LIKE A TODDLER?’_  
  
“I… how do I know you speak the truth?” Sephiroth’s mind scrambled in desperation for clarity as logical thought returned bit by bit. Now that the screaming had stopped his mind was clearing and he had room to _think_ and Sephiroth’s usual steady rationality recoiled from what he had been prepared to do at the prompting of the maddened screaming. “I have always been told that my Mother’s name was Jenova.”  
  
_‘TOLD BY WHOM? HOJO? AND YOU ACTUALLY TRUST MR. CREEPY SADISTIC SCIENTIST OF THE YEAR TO BE TRUTHFUL ABOUT SOMETHING LIKE THIS?’_  
  
After delivering that jab, wordless images flashed before his eyes. Feminine hands on a swelling belly, warm joy over a row of sonogram photos, screaming pain as Hojo carried away a white haired infant still covered in birthing fluid in complete disregard of the broken hearted woman behind him.  
  
Sephiroth’s breath caught in his throat. Those emotions, they were real, far more complete than the promises and demands that had come from Jenova. Along with the comment about Hojo… when had he stopped contesting what Hojo told him? The man never gave a straight answer when lies and misdirection would work just as well.  
  
_‘DAMN STRAIGHT.’_  
  
“You are… not what I expected.” Sephiroth let the words come slowly, leaning against the wall as exhaustion sat heavy on his shoulders.  
  
_‘I TAKE PRIDE IN NOT BEING AS EXPECTED.’_  
  
Sephiroth’s lips quirked helplessly in response to the sheer amusement in his maybe-mother’s voice, smug and cheerfully pleased with herself.  
  
**[no!]**  
  
Jenova screeched, tearing into his mind. The other voice surged forward in response, protective and outraged.  
  
_‘DON’T YOU TOUCH HIM!’_  
  
Sephiroth felt the pain lessen somewhat, but still his blood burned in his veins as he became the battleground and contested prize for two opposing forces. Suddenly Mother was all around him, shielding him from attack, shuddering as her opponent ripped and tore without care, screaming for blood.  
  
**[mine! my son my puppet my vengeance!]**  
  
_‘OVER MY DEAD BODY YOU FOSSILIZED HAG!’_  
  
One voice was weaker than the other, but no less determined, and Sephiroth realized that Jenova was winning… because the other presence was preoccupied with protecting _him_.  
  
“No!” Sephiroth shouted wordlessly in denial and threw off his Mother’s protection before the next strike. Jenova screamed victoriously, rending without care as she scrabbled for control of his thoughts. Sephiroth cried out in pain as his body jerked and seized, mind on fire as he tried to fight the invasion of alien thoughts.   
  
_‘SEPHIROTH, YOU IDIOT!’_  
  
An angel stood over him and a demon stood against him. Sephiroth could see them now in his mind’s eye. Jenova, winter-pale and strange, alien beauty housing horrible corruption. The other was almost human, but for the defensive arch of sheltering wings and pale blue eyes, the bestial vertical pupils standing out starkly against their glow. Both had claimed him as their child. One tore at him, tried to devour him. One warded him against harm, protective and fierce as she sought to drive the other away.  
  
It was a game of tug-o-war that could only end when one surrendered or Sephiroth’s mind broke, for neither would cede to the other. Evenly matched for the moment… but then the scales tipped when something, someone, tore loose from Jenova. The ghost of a woman wrenched free of the demon, running with arms outstretched to the angel, who embraced her with a fierce grin.  
  
There was a sense of being split in two as Jenova pulled at him and the other held him back, held him sae. He saw the dusty floor of the office with its overflowing shelves overlaid by a green-drenched lab, a broken mako tube beside him. Jenova screamed in terrible rage as she was flung back, locked out, and Sephiroth snapped back to himself.  
  
It was finally blessedly quiet. There was no more of that horrible _screaming_.  
  
Sephiroth staggered to his feet, wiping his damp face. His hand came away red. Blood, he noted absently, but there were more important things to worry about.  
  
“Mother?” His voice was hoarse, cracked. He had probably been screaming hard enough to wreck something, but that was not important. What was important was… “Mother? Mother please!”  
  
_‘CALM DOWN.’_  
  
“Mother?” She was alive, if not well. Sephiroth sagged in relief. “Mother, are you alright?”  
  
_‘FINE, JUST TIRED. THE CETRA HELPED US WIN.’_  
  
“The Cetra?” Sephiroth blinked, he had thought Jenova was a Cetra… but that too had been told to him by Hojo, Sephiroth realized. “How did she help?”  
  
_‘JENOVA INFECTED HER WHEN SHE FIRST LANDED ON GAIA, SO WHEN THEY PUT JENOVA IN YOU SHE GOT PUT IN TOO. YOU’RE AS MUCH CETRA AS YOU ARE JENOVA, SO SHE WAS ABLE TO USE THAT LINK TO TAKE CONTROL OF THE CONNECTION BETWEEN YOU AND JENOVA. SHE COULDN’T BREAK IT, SO SHE SWITCHED IT OVER TO HERSELF AND JUMPED SHIP.’_  
  
“She went to you.” Sephiroth concluded, sensing his mother’s surprise over their connection. It was interesting how much that honest human emotion comforted him.  
  
_‘YEAH, SHE DID. JENOVA CAN’T GET AT YOU NOW. NOT UNLESS YOU ASK HER IN.’_  
  
“You are doubly my mother now, it seems.” Sephiroth whispered to the still air of the shadowed lab. “Where are you?”  
  
A feeling of chagrin, and faint embarrassment, like bring able to feel the capitulation in a sigh. _‘I’M TRAPPED IN A CAVE IN THE MOUNTAINS TO THE SOUTHEAST OF NIBELHEIM. HAVE BEEN SINCE JUST AFTER YOU WERE BORN.’_  
  
Sephiroth’s steps paused only for a moment as he processed that information before he continued resolutely on his way. “That sounds remarkably like what Jenova told me about herself.”  
  
_‘THE BEST LIES ARE THE ONES THAT ARE BASED IN TRUTH. SEEMS JENOVA KNEW THAT.’_  
  
“Indeed.” It was full dark outside the ShinRa mansion, and Sephiroth took a moment to orient his bearings using the stars before following the faint pull of him mother’s voice. He briefly entertained the thought of waking Zack, at least for company on this little jaunt… but no. His friend deserved his sleep.  
  
_‘WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW?’_  
  
“I’m coming for you.” Sephiroth calmly started to run.  
  
_‘ON FOOT? IN THE DARK? ARE YOU INSANE?’_  
  
“I’m talking to a voice in my head.” Sephiroth pointed out reasonably, settling into a ground-eating lope that would carry him quickly to his destination without exhausting him. “What do you think about that?”  
  
_‘… BRAT.’_ The voice was warm with good humour despite the insult. Fond, in the way Sephiroth had only ever witnessed from the outside.  
  
“Yes mother.” Sephiroth smiled, the curve of his lips coming easy and genuine for once as genuine happiness warmed his chest.

/…/

_Only a few hours after Sephiroth had left the ShinRa mansion behind, the village of Nibelheim went up in flames under the hand of a man who may have been General Sephiroth… but for the madness in his eyes and the number tattooed on the back of his hand._  
  
/…/  
  
Sephiroth glanced at the wreckage of a small plane, lying just where Mother had said it would be. He leapt up to the cave, striding in past the thundering waterfall, calling flame to his left hand to light his way. Then he saw her in flesh for the first time in his living memory.  
  
“Mother.” Sephiroth swallowed, wondering why his throat hurt. “Just wait Mother, and I will see you freed.”  
  
He did not know how, but he _would_.  
  
Sephiroth laid a hand against his Mother’s crystal prison… and blinked in surprise as his hand sank within the clear stone to the wrist. Eyes hardening with resolve, he thrust both hands in until he could grip her arms, then he pulled. She left the hardened mako as easily as lifting a stone from a stream.  
  
“Mother?” Why was she so still? Sephiroth cradled her in his arms as he sank to the ground. “Mother, please wake up.”  
  
“Mrmph.” Her eyes blinked open, glowing animal eyes the colour of a clear spring sky, framed by short blond hair. She grinned at him, patting his cheek. “Calm yerself down kiddo. It jest takes a bit ta git used ta bein’ physical again.”  
  
Sephiroth reluctantly let her go when she clambered to her feet, standing as well and feeling rather out of his depth. She was tall for a woman, though she was shorter than him by a great deal. Not really surprising, once he stopped to think about it. Sephiroth was a seven foot tall brick wall who towered over most people, and he had to have gotten his size from somewhere. Still, he had almost expected her to be bigger than he was, her mind-voice had been so strong.  
  
“What?” She grinned, obviously amused by his scrutiny. “Am I not what ya were expectin’?”  
  
“No, I mean.” Sephiroth rarely floundered for words. He discovered that he was not very fond of the feeling. “What is your name? What… what did you name me?”  
  
She was silent, looking up at him for a long moment before speaking. “I never did git the chance ta name ya. Hojo took ya away fer testin’ soon’s the cord was cut.”  
  
Both were silent, just looking at one another despairingly before she sighed.  
  
“I’m Captain Cid Highwind.” She smiled when Sephiroth’s eyebrows shot up at her rank. “Air force. Ya’ve been Sephiroth yer whole life, and it’s a good name fer all that it’s what that fucker Hojo chose. It’s what all’a the important people in yer life call ya by, and it’s gotta lotta meanin’. But if ya want one from me… I don’t mind if ya wanna call yerself Sephiroth Highwind.”  
  
Sephiroth closed his eyes, letting the second name (the family name, the name which meant that he _had_ a family) sink into his mind. Cid watched him with sad eyes. “Does it mean that much ta ya?”  
  
Sephiroth was startled out of his revere. “To not have a name was painful. Like I was less than others, with no origin, no history beyond the labs.”  
  
“I kin understand that.” Cid’s brow creased as he thought things over, the scheming part of him fostered by Shin-Ra employment losing to his innate honesty. “I’ve gotta few things ta tell ya before we leave, kiddo, so pull up a rock. This’ll take a while.”  
  
Sephiroth and Cid sat down, and then Cid calmly explained everything that had happened to him over the last day. The plane crash, finding the cave, the merge with Lucrecia, and the way the Cetra in the Lifestream had pulled on him to stop Jenova from controlling Sephiroth. When he was finished with his story, Cid waited for Sephiroth’s reaction.  
  
The Silver General sat unmoving with his head down, face shadowed by his bangs.  
  
“Well, I guess…” Cid swallowed the lump in his (or her? Fuck this was confusing) throat. “Now that ya know everythin’, I guess ya wanna get away from me, huh? Sorry about not tellin’ ya sooner, but I kinda wanted out of that rock.”  
  
“You said that you were my Mother.” Sephiroth spoke slowly, ignoring the apology. “You said… I was born of Lucrecia Crescent, whose memory now resides in you. I was made from Jenova and the infected Cetra woman whose spirit joined with yours.”  
  
“Yeah?” Cid eyed Sephiroth warily, confused as to where this was going. “That’s true.”  
  
“Then… you are my Mother.” Sephiroth decided firmly, raising his head to look Cid in the eyes. “Perhaps it is all coincidence, perhaps it is the work of the Norns, but you are my Mother in flesh, spirit and choice.”  
  
“But…” Cid could not really argue with that. Sephiroth was, in the most technical sense, completely correct in his summation.  
  
“By your own words, this is so.” Sephiroth was infuriatingly calm about the strange situation they were in.  
  
“Yeah.” Cid slowly started to grin as he accepted the ridiculousness of his new reality. “Alright kid. Ya’ve got yerself a mother if ya think ya kin stand an old cuss like me.”  
  
“I think I’ll be fine.” Sephiroth’s arch look was dry as the desert. “I’ve survived worse.”  
  
Cid grimaced at that statement and started plotting how to kill Hojo and make it look like an accident. Never had liked the creepy fucker anyway.  
  
“Right then.” Cid stood up and dusted off his pants. Which were actually _his_ pants now, as he had become male again about halfway through Sephiroth’s little speech. “Let’s git outta here.”  
  
“Yes, let’s.” Sephiroth agreed easily, head tilted as he examined his Mother’s male body. Not all that different from the female presentation all told. Slightly wider shoulders. Slightly rougher look to the facial bones. Still wiry, with thickly muscled legs and ash-blond hair cut short. Sephiroth blinked and shook his head, rising to his feet. “Zack is probably tearing the town apart looking for me by now.”  
  
“Who’s Zack?” Cid had never really paid much attention to anything that did not have wings or an engine, so there was no chance in Hel of him being able to name the members of SOLDIER the way some other ShinRa employees could. “Someone special?”  
  
“Yes. My second in command.” Sephiroth’s faint smile was fond and a bit wistful. “My best friend, these days.”  
  
“Sounds special alright. Let’s git goin’ then.” With a pleased grin at the thought of getting out from under the rocks, Cid led the way out of the cave.

/…/  
  
When they got to Nibelheim, it was razed to the ground, and only the ShinRa Mansion still stood intact among the burned out husks of the villager’s homes. The area was crawling with Turks and Troopers. Sephiroth was not going to take the risk of losing his mother so soon after finding her, and refused to reveal himself until they knew what had happened. A few hours of listening in on the conversations and hacking the radio communications gave Sephiroth a basic picture of what had occured in his absence.  
  
Hojo had succeeded in cloning him. It was the only explanation for how Sephiroth could have burnt down the town when he had left the day before. Zachary and Cloud Strife (the boy who would be a SOLDIER, Zack’s new friend) had fought against the seemingly insane Sephiroth and had suffered for it... Sephiroth knew that they would not have gone for the true killing blows. Would not had utilized the advantage they could have gained from underhanded ambush tactics. Not right from the start they way they should have if they wanted to guarantee their win. Not until they had proof that their General was irredeemable, and by that time they had lost their chance to escape the fray unscathed. Hojo had found them both nearly dead of their wounds after facing down an insane SOLDIER Elite and ordered both men transferred to one of his labs in the aftermath.  
  
“Shit.” Cid took in the situation just as Sephiroth had, and with an equal amount of paranoia. “Come on, kiddo. We can’t stay here.”  
  
“But what about Zack?” Sephiroth protested feebly, feeling his heart wrench at the thought of his cheerful, smiling friend drowned in screaming green, of charming innocence cut away under Hojo’s knives. “And Cloud. Mother, we cannot just leave them!”  
  
“We ain’t, kiddo.” Cid’s face was grimly determined as he looked out at the wreckage that had once been a thriving town. “But right now we don’t know where they are. From the looks of things Shin-Ra’s hushin’ this right up and they think it was ya who did this. Not that Jenova-spawned copy. The longer we keep ‘em in the dark about that lil tidbit the better. As much as I’d like ta let ya go play the avenging angel, we’re outnumbered and we don’t know what kinda condition yer friends are in. We can’t risk showin’ our hand right yet.”  
  
“It’s logical.” Sephiroth nodded his head, tactical thinking asserting itself as he forced his mind to stop overlaying Zack’s face on his personal experiences with Hojo’s ministrations.  
  
“But ya don’t like it, I know. Ya don’t gotta.” Cid grimaced, rubbing a rough hand over his mouth. “I don’t like it either, kiddo, but we’ll be better off in Rocket Town. That’s my place, and fulla my people. There’s not a soul in the Air Force or grease monkey in the motor pool that I didn’t train at one point or another. We’ll find yer boys.”  
  
Taking his mother’s words to heart, Sephiroth followed the blond away from the burned ruins of what he now knew was his birthplace and prayed that his men could hold on and survive long enough for him to find them. Prayed that they lasted long enough for Sephiroth to free them.

Sephiroth would not rest until this nightmare was ended, and his people brought home.


	2. Drowning in the Memories of Betrayal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The thing about being an established figure of authority who has _already_ gone through the process of maintaining that authority after official support has been withdrawn is that you have zero second thoughts about roping your remaining subordinates into helping you stage a secret war against the established world order.
> 
> Captain Cid _Fucking_ Highwind has had quite enough of SHIN-RA Inc.'s bullshit and he has the slightly cracked in the head walking weapon of mass destruction to prove it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought about Cid keeping the gender-flipping secret for less than a second before I realized that Cid had _absolutely no reason_ to hide his new party trick from his staff.
> 
> And so...

=/=

**(Cid is not only used to being in charge, but also being able to trust his subordinates. This makes gathering the forces of revolution significantly easier than most would expect.)**

There was a pulse of light, white and red and gold, like sunlight and blood, that left Shera and Junior blinking frantically to clear the after image spots from their vision. Cid smirked as his subordinate's eyes went wide and their faces paled. Hands propped on now much-curvier hips, Cid tilted her head to the side and lifted a single ash-blonde brow in question. "Well, what d'ya think?"

"Captain?" Shera's voice was faint as she swayed on her feet. "Y-you're a... a..."

"Holy _shit_ , Captain." Junior was fighting back a grin as his gaze traced over the curves that filled out Cid's flight suit in frank admiration. "You sure clean up nice! Do you think I could learn that trick?"

" _Junior_!" Shera shrieked and slapped at the laughing co-pilot. As Junior ducked out of Shera's reach, she turned back to Cid with a wail of confusion. "Captain, how did this _happen_? How long have you been able to... to..."

"Ta what? Turn inta a woman?" Cid shrugged and Shera nearly choked on her own tongue at the visual proof that her Captain was _not wearing a bra_. "No more'n a few days. Have ya'll heard about the shit that went down'n Nibelheim yet?"

"Only in passing." Junior eyed Shera warily as he straightened up. Shaking his head at the female engineer's glazed expression, Junior looked Cid in the eye. "We were more concerned with locating you at the time of the incident, to be perfectly honest, Captain."

"Is... _this_..." Shera waved a hand at Cid's torso. "Is it because of the crash? Did something, um, _odd_ happen, Captain?"

"Odd, huh? Ya could say that, I suppose." Cid rested her weight on her heels and sized up her subordinates in consideration. After a moment of silence, Cid nodded her head, mind made up. "I crashed the Bronco in a bowl valley over near Cosmo Canyon. Pretty sure it used ta be a caldera at some point. The inner mountain faces are pretty much sheer ninety degree verticals. I wasn't gettin' outta there without a workin' plane or a green chocobo. There was a cave though, tucked in behind a waterfall, that I could reach it on foot. Figured I'd try m'luck and see if there was any sorta tunnel that led out."

"I take it you decided to take shelter in the cave even if it wasn't an escape path?" Shera shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself. "What about the monsters?"

"I had m'spear, and I was gonna see if it needed clearin' out before settin' up any kinda camp." Cid sighed and raked a hand through her hair. "Was all academic once I got inside the cave though. That's when things went batshit..."

/.../

"Wait. You _ate_ a vengeful ghost and it turned you into a woman?" Junior's mouth snapped shut as Cid glared. With an aggravated huff, Cid continued recounting her experiences from the last few days.

/.../

"An _alien invasion_ killed the Ancients?" Shera's face was a picture of horrified fascination. "Where did it come from? Why doesn't anyone _know_?"

"The Cetra descendants knew." Cid's face twisted into a snarl. "Except they were a small population already, and Jenova left ‘em even smaller, and with the way SHIN-RA's hunted the last remaining few of ‘em down over the last few decades, they didn't have much've a chance ta pass the information on down before they all kicked it."

"Well that sucks balls." Junior's deadpan response made Cid snort in amusement before she kept talking.

/.../

"... You're saying that General Sephiroth, the Demon of Wutai, _that_ General Sephiroth, thinks you're his mother." Shera shook her head slowly, trying to fit the newest revelations into her worldview.

"It don't make much in the way of sense ta me, either." Cid sighed and scratched her head. "The brat's pretty insistent on that point though, an' I don't see no harm in it."

"Plus, arguing with the Silver General? Probably not a good plan." Junior snickered and waggled his eyebrows. "Captain has proved his genius once again!"

/.../

"They covered up a massacre." Junior's tone was flat out disgusted. "I knew the company was worthless when they pulled our funding after the terrorist attack, but... I didn't think they were actually _evil_."

"More'n that, Junior, I think they _planned_ on the Nibelheim mission goin' FUBAR." Cid's grim visage kept the other two silent. "Did a lil' diggin', an' it was the same guy was behind both the deploy orders an' the cover up, an' I'd bet my best engine that he was the one behind handlin' the monster reports too."

Shera exchanged a look with Junior and breathed in deeply to gather her courage. An ancient threat, and magic beyond anything she had heard of before, and a figure of modern legend looking to her Captain for direction. They were caught up in the saga of their time, and she would not falter. Shera looked her Captain in the eye and swallowed back her trepidation in favour of speech. "Who is our enemy, Captain?"

Even as a woman, Cid's bone structure was too strong for conventional beauty, but that predatory smile made Cid's eyes gleam diamond bright as she rolled her shoulders with a dragon's savage grace. Cid's eyes narrowed and her voice purred unspoken threat. "Professor Hojo."

/.../  
  
**(Cid is surprisingly chill about Sephiroth’s more insane impulses, because the difference between ‘crazy’ and ‘genius’ is that genius ideas actually _work_.)**

Standing with the crew he had gathered to retrieve the Tiny Bronco, Cid watched in bemusement as Sephiroth hauled a vaguely familiar, dishevelled redhead behind the waterfall. In no great hurry to interfere, Cid sauntered up the faint path. The redhead lunged in something close to panic, falling on his face and clawing frantically at the ground as black gloved hands grabbed him by the ankles and dragged the kicking, screaming redhead backwards into the cave. Flanked by Shera and Junior, Cid followed his 'son' behind the waterfall.

The glowing crystals that budded from the cavern walls provided more than enough light for Cid to see Sephiroth bounce the struggling redhead off the ground a few times. While the redhead fought to regain the breath Sephiroth had knocked out of him, Sephiroth flung the redhead into the mako fountain Cid had spent a few days in, and then nonchalantly pushed the sputtering redhead all the way under when he tried to surface. The flailing and splashing Cid expected, the little firework explosions of light were a bit more surprising. Sephiroth's eyes were glowing bright as magic as he stared intently into the searing lights.

Cid refrained from saying anything, and his subordinates followed his lead and kept quiet. Even as mako-laced liquid was splashed up the walls, none of them moved to interfere. The lights eventually slowed, then stopped, and Sephiroth waited another heartbeat before hauling the man in his hold up out of the mako fountain. Cid glanced at his watch curiously. The lightshow had only lasted a little under three minutes. It had felt like much longer.

Glowing water streamed off the limp body as Sephiroth stepped out of the pooling Lifestream waters and set his burden down on the floor. A thump to the back, and weak coughs echoed in the otherwise quiet cave. Sephiroth looked rather pleased with himself, and Cid's eyes narrowed as he realized that the man dripping mako onto the stones was _not_ the same man Sephiroth had dragged into the cave. Pale skin had turned the deep tan of a Gold Desert native, and the smooth fall of red had become thick black dreadlocks.

"Sephiroth?" The Silver General looked up at the sound of Cid's voice. The Captain raised an eyebrow and gestured to Sephiroth's victim. "So, ya wanna introduce yer friend?"

"He is Reed Caul, one of my Thirds." Sephiroth's hands were gentle now as he helped the semi-conscious SOLDIER expel the raw mako he had inhaled while trying to escape his Lifestream dunking. "Zack helped him earn a rank promotion. He was taken by Genesis COPYS while on a mission with a timeframe that overlapped with our deployment to Nibelheim."

"Yer thinkin' he was set up?" Waving for Shera and Junior to stay back, Cid headed over to help Sephiroth with the recovering Third Class. "How'd ya know which one he was, anyhow?"

"I saw his name tag." Sephiroth shrugged and squeezed mako out of the gasping SOLDIER’S thick hair. "Then I thought it odd that all of the SOLDIERS' who owed Zack favours seem to have mysteriously run afoul of bad luck and dangerous missions over the course of the last few weeks."

"SHIN-RA don't want ta chance yer boy gettin' in touch with any allies." Cid's eyes narrowed as he crouched to take the Third's vitals. "So they've kept him alive, at least, and they don't got any plans ta off 'im soon."

"Indeed." Sephiroth inclined his head, relief flickering in his eyes as Reed's breathing evened out and the muscle spasms slowed. "I came to a similar conclusion, and if there is no execution date to force our hand..."

"We kin take the time ta plan. Gather up allies. Make sure the rescue goes right th' first time." Cid nodded and grinned at Sephiroth. "Ya did good, Kiddo."

A soft groan pulled Cid's attention away from Sephiroth's embarrassed-yet-pleased expression. Foggy materia-gold mako eyes met Cid's blue, and the dazed SOLDIER’S brow knit in confusion. "... who're y'?"

"Easy there, brat. Ya've had a rough time ‘a it. Let's git ya settled first, before we start with th' questions." Without waiting for an answer, Cid pulled the Third Class up into a seated position, and Reed was quickly distracted by the was the cave spun rapidly around him. Snorting at the way Reed's face went grey, then green as his eyes rolled, Cid looked over at Sephiroth. "How'd ya know dunkin' 'im in th' fountain would fix 'im up, anyhow?"

"I didn't." Sephiroth shrugged one shoulder, standing up an hauling Reed with him. "However, considering your own metamorphosis and access to knowledge from previous lifetimes, I felt it unlikely to do any further harm."

"So yer reasonin' was 'it can't hurt ta try'? Ya dragged 'im here and almost drowned 'im... on a _hunch_?" Cid looked at Sephiroth and chuckled wryly. "Ya really _are_ my kid, ain't ya?"

/.../  
  
**(Sephiroth does _not_ appreciate people breaking his things.)**

It was dark, and there was a single Voice. A Voice so powerful it drove out independent thought, suppressed individual identity. Nothing mattered but to followed the urgings, the orders, of that Voice. To fulfill the desires of the Voice, and to honour it's wishes. There was no past, no future. Nothing beyond the Voice.

Then... hands that grabbed, and held, and dragged. Liquid that closed overhead and filled mouth and nose and lungs in the dim echo of old nightmares.

Light rushed in to banish the dark. A world, a lifetime, of other voices streaming back into his mind in the wake of dawning awareness. The single Voice was no more, drowned and washed away and in the aftermath of that banishment SOLDIER Third Class Lieutenant Reed Caul clawed his way out of Hel’s domain to freedom.

/.../

Everything was blurry, and the way the light moved made it hard to track his surroundings. It took a distressing amount of effort to keep his eyes open. There were voices talking over his head, and one of them was familiar but he could not put a name to it. His uniform was soaked through and there were hands pressing down on his back, helping him force liquid out of his lungs. Each heave of his chest let the breaths come easier, let more air into his lungs. Had he drowned? He did not remember any water, his mission had been to the Gold Desert, and he had been so excited to show his unit the place he had been born...

He was never going to take breathing for granted again. Choking and thrashing and struggling weakly as he was manhandled into a position that let gravity do most of the work of emptying the liquid from his lungs for him. He must look so pathetic. Some SOLDIER he was. Humiliation _burned_. His first full breath made him choke on hysteria.

All he could smell was mako.

/.../

Things were confusing for a bit after (his panic attack) he blanked out. There was a cave and a waterfall and ( _mako, mako everywhere and not a drop to drink_ ) then they were out in the too-bright sunlight that stabbed his sensitive eyes and aching head with white-hot spears and ( _he had mako poisoning again fuck it all he hated it when that happened_ ) there was a large group of people in the brown and gold leather of the Engineering Corps standing by three massive cargo-hauler helicopters and ( _he just wanted the world to stop spinning_.)

"Sit the dozy fucker down before he upchucks." Smoke and whiskey soaked kindness in the voice and gentle, work-calloused hands tipping his chin up with brisk care. Warm-sharp eyes staring into his. Blue like winter ice, like welding flames, and alien in a way that was familiar-strange like a half-remembered dream. "Ya in there, SOLDIER?"

"... y'n't th' g'n'r'l!" An amused snort and too-pointed white teeth flashed as the man grinned.

"Damn right I'm not!" His head dipped and he wobbled as the hold on his chin was released. "Brat! Comfort yer minion!"

"Mother, really. Lieutenant Caul is not my _minion_. You make me sound like a cartoon villain." A tall, dark shadow moved into view. There was a spill of silk bright silver and mako green magic eyes and a scent like lightning strikes. "He is my _subordinate_. Now then, Lieutenant, please report."

"Gen'ral!" Reed beamed and tried to salute despite the rebellion being staged by his limbs. The world swirled around him but the General was here! Alive! Mako poisoning aside Reed was having a _wonderful_ day.

=/=

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bet you all feel _horribly_ guilty about all the dead Genesis COPYS from canon now, don't you? I will make you overthink _All The Things_. ♥
> 
> And yes, that _is_ the "Recall" Soldier that Zack helps out in Crisis Core. I have once again managed to avoid the use of an OC in a speaking role!


	3. Charisma and full disclosure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cid and Sephiroth have been busy, busy people. There are things a Rocket Scientist just is not trained to handle.
> 
> So Cid goes recruiting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cid isn't very good at things that (i) don't have engines and (ii) can't be shouted into submission. Unfortunately, much of what Cid and Sephiroth are getting up to involves saving products of Mad Science from their own genetics.
> 
> Sure, they're cheating by fixing things with magic mineral water, but that doesn't mean an actual medic would go amiss. Luckily, Cid's been looking into the aftermath of Shin-Ra attacks, and that usually points you _right at_ agitators of rebellion.

=/=

**(Cid is not good with the squishy sciences. Fortunately, Cid is very good at recruiting the right people.)**

"You Shalua Rui?" The redheaded teenager paused in her note taking and turned slowly, exposing the metal prosthetic and damaged eyelid on her left side to an interested blue gaze.

"I am." The young doctor raised a curious eyebrow at the other woman. "Who are you?"

"Captain Cid Highwind." The blonde woman smirked, unlit cigarette dangling from the corner of her mouth. "Ya might've heard of me. I'm the head've the Rocket Town project site."

"... Forgive me Captain, but I was under the impression that you were male." Shalua gave the unzipped front of Cid's flight suit, and the accompanying exposed cleavage, a pointed look.

"I usually am. Male, that is." Cid shrugged, watching Shalua's expression go blank in her confusion. The pilot grinned in amusement and tilted her head. "Figured ya'd appreciate me keepin' this lil' meetin' of ours off'a SHIN-RA's radar though. So."

"Even so. I have no great love for SHIN-RA, that much is true." The redhead nodded once, and waved the blonde into a seat. "I have to admit some curiosity. How have you managed to convince SHIN-RA that you're a man when, well..."

Cid snorted in amusement as Shalua's flesh hand waved through the air in sweeping curves that indicated Cid's overtly displayed feminine attributes. Yeah, the Captain had a habit of flaunting the tits when he was being sneaky. It was an easy way to trhow off pursuit and mess with the Turk's information network.

"Ya know how yer kid sister kin talk ta computers?" Cid waited until Shalua nodded and gestured to his currently female body. "Same kinda thing here, except I kin switch sexes. I'm a man, who kin sometimes be a woman, and if y'all could keep this ta yerself I'd be mighty appreciative."

"I... see." Shalua blinked as she processed the information. Providing the information was a blatant bid for trust, on Cid's part. The concept of it was strange, and unusual, but... well. It still did not beat out Touch-Me's. At least Cid stayed human. A shrewd look raked Cid from head to toe. "So if you're hiding what you can do, why expose your secret to me like this?"

"Couple ‘a reasons." Cid sprawled out in her seat with casual assurance and gave Shalua a blandly amused look. Cid knew about Shelke, and Shalua now knew about Cid. A secret for a secret to keep each other honest. They both knew how these sorts of negotiations worked. "First: I jest started this gender-flippin' thing, and I wanna make sure it ain't gonna fuck me up. You've gotta good rep, even if yer still a brat, and ya understand... hm, unique medical circumstances."

"That makes sense." Shalua rested a hip against her desk, metal fingers twitching under the drape of her coat. "What was the other reason?"

"We know what ya want." Cid held up a hand when Shalua stiffened. "Now that ain't a threat. Ya want yer kid sister back wit'cha and safe. That's a damned admirable thing ta dedicate yer life ta, especially since ya ain’t even all-over legal ta drink yet, and it's a price I don't much mind payin'. Hells, girl, if I didn't need yer doctorin' skills I'd help ya git her back fer free jest because y'all deserve ta be happy t’gether."

"You speak as if you can guarantee me my sister." Shalua's smile was all teeth, a savage, bleak thing without humour. "Hiding the way you are, how do you even expect to find her?"

"I didn't come here ta hang my hopes on yer better nature, girl." Cid stood up and propped fisted hands on her hips. "We're gonna be gettin' inta trouble soon, me and my stupid ass crew. People're gonna be gettin' hurt in way magic ain't gonna be able ta fix. We need someone like ya, and we're gonna pay ya what yer worth. Plus..."

Cid grinned like a shark scenting blood. "We already _know_ where yer sister is."

"You... what?" Shalua's breath stuttered in shock as she stared at the Captain. "How... how do I know that you aren't lying to me to secure my cooperation?"

"I ain't the kinda man ta make promises I can't make good on." Cid shifted her weight to one foot, tapping the toe of the other combat boot against the floor. Her grin invited Shalua to share in her humour, and the reminder that Shalua had already been given a down payment in the form of one of Cid's secrets. "So, do ya think ya kin work with me, girl? Are ya willin' ta stick it out even after ya git yer sister back fer a regular paycheque that won't ask ya ta break yer oaths?"

"Captain Highwind, if you can truly bring my sister back to me I'll be your doctor for the rest of your goddamned life." Shalua pushed up her glasses, wiping her eye in the same motion. She whirled around and started to rummage through her desk. "Just allow me to collect a few things and we can go."

"Sounds good ta me." Cid grinned and zipped up her jacket. "Once we git back ta my place I'll give ya the data we got on yer sister, and then we kin hammer out a proper employment contract."

"I-I'd appreciate that, Captain." Shalua's shoulders hitched but she did not pause in her packing. "Is there anything in particular that I should prepare for?"

"Whelp..." Cid's eyes lifted to casually examine the ceiling. "Ya ain't gotta problem with heights, do ya?"

"... Not that I'm aware of." Shalua looked at Cid over the top rim of her glasses, eyebrows arched in silent question. "I suppose I should say I was more concerned with preparing for medical emergencies, but perhaps I should instead ask you to clarify what you mean by that question?"

"Nah." Cid reached out a hand to take one of Shalua's bags, grinning wickedly enough to compete Ifrit's thousand dijiin offspring. "I kinda wanna see yer face when we git there, now."

"... Right." Shalua slipped the last file into her briefcase and snapped it closed. Her laptop bag and purse went over her other shoulder, and her weapon case was pulled out of hiding. The redhead stared at her makeshift clinic, and a pang went through her at the thought of all the equipment she was leaving behind. "That should do."

"Follow me then." Cid turned and left. Shalua squared her shoulders and exited in the wake of her new employer. The sun was bright, and it took a minute before Shalua saw the large truck and the two men waiting beside it. Like Cid, they wore leather flight suits and combat boots. Their bomber jackets were zipped up to the neck, and they wore what Shalua assumed were Highwind's colours. Instead of the Ace of Spades sewn on Highwind's sleeve, the two men had a Queen of Clubs and a Queen of Hearts, respectively. Despite being on the ground, they both had their flight helmets on and the visors pulled down. Cid nodded to the two men and jerked a thumb at Shalua's clinic. "Dr. Rui has agreed ta join us, boys. Git the clinic packed up and bring it home, would ya? I'm gonna take the Doc on ahead."

"Sure thing, Captain." The man with the Club card on his sleeve jumped up onto the back of the truck and started handing boxes down to his partner.

"Reed's watching the Bronco, Captain." The man on the ground opened the packing crates and leaned the lids against the side of the truck. "You can send him over to help us when you get there."

"Sure thing, boys. See ya in the mornin'." Cid waved for Shalua to follow again and headed for the edge of town. Shalua looked back over her shoulder, thinking about her equipment. The blonde woman leading her away saw the look on the doctor's face and laughed. "Ya don't gotta worry, Essai and Sebastian know how ta pack sensitive equipment. Yer gadgets will be fine."

"... Alright." Shalua hitched her bag higher on her shoulder and stepped faster to catch up to the pilot. The field outside of town had apparently been repurposed as a runway for a small plane. Another man was waiting there, dressed like the first two in what Shalua was beginning to think was Highwind's crew uniform. The doctor looked at his sleeve as he jumped to the ground and saw a Jack of Clubs. Were they rank patches? What did the suits mean? Shalua shook her head and looked at the plane. "I see why you asked me about heights."

"Hi, Captain!" Even with his visor down and his scarf pulled up, the man’s grin was blinding. "I kept all the monsters away! It was fun!"

"Thanks, now g'wan and help the other two, Reed." Cid laughed and pointed the enthusiastic man on his way. Shalua watched Reed run towards town and absently handed Cid her bags as the pilot stowed them in the passenger plane’s small cargo compartment. With a grin, Cid slammed the hatch shut and secured it. "Reed's a good kid. Don't fret, the other two'll keep him in line. Anyway, up ya go. It's time we was headin' home."

"Home, huh?" Shalua accepted Cid's help into the plane, thinking about that word as she buckled in and let Cid check the straps. The smile was completely involuntary, but she had a good feeling about this move. "I like the sound of home."

=/=

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not the longest thing I've ever written, but at least I updated. XP
> 
> It's hilarious to me that Cid's the one in charge of the Rebellion this time around and the Turks have _no idea_ about what he's getting up to. Because despite having his funding on the Rocket Project pulled, Cid was still on good enough terms with Shin-Ra Inc's management to keep petitioning for new contracts. Which is probably how he scrounged up the funds to keep the Rocket Project afloat and kept Rocket Town residents employed.
> 
> But anyway. The differences between how Cid rebels against the world order and how Barrett fights the power are interesting given their superficial character similarities. I mean... it's really damn obvious that Cid's had a higher level education and leadership training. Whereas Barrett kinda just *angrily flails* until things explode.

**Author's Note:**

> Cid's real gender is Dragon. What is the gender binary and social convention ya'll keep fussin' about? Cid don't care. Cid has more important things to be doing.
> 
> Like drinking a lovely cup of tea. I think I'll get on with that myself.


End file.
